KOCHI: In a major victory for former finance minister T M Thomas Isaac, the Enforcement Directorate on Thursday informed the Kerala High Court that it would withdraw the summons issued to him and KIIFB as part of its investigation into the issuance of Masala Bonds. Noting that there was nothing more to be done, Justice Devan Ramachandran allowed the plea filed by Isaac against the summons issued by ED. The court also partly allowed the plea filed by KIIFB officials.
The court had last time asked the ED whether it intended to withdraw the summons issued to Isaac. The agency had also sought details of the bank accounts of the family members of Isaac.
The court made it clear that it had not gone into the merits of the investigation carried out by the ED, including the issue of whether the probe should be continued or not. Since the summons was to be withdrawn, the court said there was no proposal to enter into the contentions that the ED’s actions were beyond the jurisdiction under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA), and other applicable statutes. However, the petitioners are at liberty to do so, as and when it is warranted in the future.
The court declined the plea by the counsel for KIIFB for prohibiting the ED from initiating any probe into the issuance of Masala Bonds, on the ground that it was not aware if the investigation was solely confined to the issuance of Masala Bonds.